Compare and contrast the position of the US President and the UK Prime Minister.

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Introduction

Chantelle Flemming Compare and contrast the position of the US President and the UK Prime Minister. The lack of a codified constitution in the UK means that there are little formal checks imposed upon the Prime minister. Due to the royal prerogative powers vested in the Prime Minister such as the declaration of war, the Prime minister is able to act instantaneously to a disaster such as I raq, there is no need for him to ratify treaties or for parliament to declare war. Although the President is restricted by congress they have in the past acted with out the permission of congress. ...read more.

Middle

In foreign policy the President remains dominant especially in crisis situations. The power of the president in the area of foreign policy has expanded since 1945, in theory congress has the power to declare war yet in practice it is usually the president who commits to the act of war. This is an area of presidential power which is significant as it has been exercised over 150 times Both the president and the Prime minister are leaders of political parties this is a shared position of the two leaders. However the Prime minister can enjoy a strong party system, in which the party dominates commons and the leadership of the majority party, is the government. ...read more.

Conclusion

This is poles apart from the Prime Minister in the UK who ensures that everyone toes the party line, by using the whip system. Tony Blair especially insists that his party is singing from the same hymn sheet. The idea of a collective responsibility also shows the position of the Prime Minister to be concluding, whether a cabinet minister agrees with what the Prime Minister or not they must resign if they are not going to unite with him in the public eye. The President has to work with the legislative bodies in order to achieve what he wants however the Prime Minister dominates the legislative bodies of the government. How well the president works with congress can depend on his success as president. ...read more.

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